Why can't someone in the British Royal Family marry a catholic?

Question

This is confusing... why can't they marry a catholic? Also what's the difference between a Protestant and a Christian? I think its a form of Christianity but I'm not sure?

Answer 1

All Protestants are Christians but not all Christians are Protestants. Protestantism is a denomination within Christianity, so yes, it is a form of Christianity.

Due to historical tensions in the United Kingdom and its predecessor realms it was legislated (Act of Settlement 1701) that Catholics could not ascend to the throne in order to maintain the Church of England, which the king or queen is head of, which is Protestant. Because the Church of England is essentially broken off from the Roman Catholic church it would be a conflict to have a monarch who is technically head of the Chruch of England under the Pope.

Note though, that the Church of England considers itself "Catholic" and that the Roman Catholic church is called "the Popish religion/etc" in the relevant laws. These are the Catholics that British dynasts cannot marry if they want to be in line of succession.

But yes, one can be a British dynast and marry a Catholic, but the moment they marry the Catholic they cease to in line of succession. For instance, Prince Michael of Kent married a Catholic, Baroness Marie-Christine von Reibnitz, and she became a princess but Michael is no longer in line to the throne.

Answer 2

They can marry a catholic...Prince Michael of Kent did it about 30 years ago.  They just have to renounce their right to the throne.  It is because of the act of Settlement of 1701.  Protestantism is a form of Christianity just like catholicism.  The queen or King is also the head of the Church of England which is not catholic.  This is exactly why a member of the British royal family would have to renounce their right to the throne.

Answer 3

The United Kingdom is a Church of England or Anglican state.Henry VIII changed the religion and now there are Acts and Bills about who can be in line of succession.The monarch serves as titular head of the Church in the UK and must be Church of England. From http://www.royal.gov/uk/output/Page5655....

"The order of succession is the sequence of members of the Royal Family in the order in which they stand in line to the throne.

The basis for the succession was determined in the constitutional developments of the seventeenth century, which culminated in the Bill of Rights (1689) and the Act of Settlement (1701).

When James II fled the country in 1688, Parliament held that he had 'abdicated the government' and that the throne was vacant. The throne was then offered, not to James's young son, but to his daughter Mary and her husband William of Orange, as joint rulers.

It therefore came to be established not only that the Sovereign rules through Parliament, but that the succession to the throne can be regulated by Parliament, and that a Sovereign can be deprived of his title through misgovernment.

The succession to the throne is regulated not only through descent, but also by statute; the Act of Settlement confirmed that it was for Parliament to determine the title to the throne.

The Act laid down that only Protestant descendants of Princess Sophia - the Electress of Hanover and granddaughter of James I - are eligible to succeed. Subsequent Acts have confirmed this.

Parliament, under the Bill of Rights and the Act of Settlement, also laid down various conditions which the Sovereign must meet. A Roman Catholic is specifically excluded from succession to the throne; nor may the Sovereign marry a Roman Catholic.

The Sovereign must, in addition, be in communion with the Church of England and must swear to preserve the established Church of England and the established Church of Scotland. The Sovereign must also promise to uphold the Protestant succession."

Catholocism is the oldest form of Christianity;the others,Church of England and Protestant are other forms of Christianity.

Answer 4

According to the current British line of succession, anyone who is Roman Catholic, becomes Roman Catholic, or marries a Roman Catholic is permanently excluded from the succession. This policy stems from the Act of Settlement of 1701, which was introduced under the reign of Queen Anne.

The Act provided that the throne would pass to the Electress Sophia of Hanover — a granddaughter of James I of England, VI of Scotland, niece of Charles I of England and Scotland — and her Protestant descendants. Only the descendants of Sophia who were Protestant, and had not married a Roman Catholic, could succeed to the throne. Roman Catholics and those who marry Roman Catholics are barred from ascending the throne "for ever".

The English Reformation was the series of events in 16th century England by which the Church of England broke away from the authority of the Pope and the Roman Catholic Church. Ever since the death of Henry VIII's death, founder of The Church of England, there were serious of English Catholic rulers trying to change the nation back into Catholicism.

Mary I of England was a Catholic fanatic, who prosecuted over 300 Protestants because they refused to convert back to Catholicism. Elizabeth I was struggling to introduce a law that tried to "tolerate both religion." James II's religion was the main cause of the Glorious Revolution of 1688. The Parliament finally decided to pass a law, which prevents Catholics to inherit the crown. This step was taken to prevent future religious conflicts.

Note: Protestantism encompasses the forms of Christian faith and practice that originated with the doctrines of the Reformation. Protestant doctrine, in contradistinction to that of Roman Catholicism, rejects papal authority and doctrine, and is also known in continental European traditions as Evangelical doctrine. It holds that biblical scripture (rather than tradition or ecclesiastic interpretation of scripture[1]) is the only source of revealed biblical truth, and also that salvation can be achieved through God's grace alone. The key tenets of Protestantism are outlined in the Five Solas.